Pink & Green Gatsby Feel The Manor Gardens Wedding

What an utter delight it is to be sharing The Manor Gardens wedding of WWW readers Cullum and Katie in Kent. Their day was so delicate and pretty, with personal touches and a pink and green colour palette. Swoon!

They had a Gatsby 1920s feel to their day, with a relaxed garden party vibe and Katie wore a sensational 20s feel beaded gown. Then there was Cullum’s dapper three-piece suit and the gorgeous pink bridesmaid dresses, all such lovely outfits.

From the seasonal blooms to the live entertainment provided by WWW wedding supplier Alive Network, it truly was a very special day indeed. I can’t thank Paul Fuller Photography enough for sending over these divine images.

The Manor Gardens Wedding

The Proposal

We were away for a couple of nights at Foxhill Manor (@foxhillmanor) and Cullum popped the question over a glass of champagne next to the roaring fire and Christmas tree.

Katie was too busy googling the rules of backgammon to realise what was happening initially! After he had proposed, and Katie had stopped crying, he had arranged a meal inspired by us – Mussels (the first meal we had in our first home), duck and dauphinoise (the first meal he ever cooked Katie!) and white chocolate and raspberry cheesecake (Katie’s favourite and one of our wedding desserts).

The Vision

A big party that celebrated us and our friends and family. We wanted a garden party with a little bit of a Gatsby-esque vibe but that felt relaxed and informal.

Budget

£30,000

The Venue

St Mary and All Saints Church, Boxley

The Manor Gardens, Birling – we really wanted a blank canvas venue and from the minute we walked into The Manor Gardens we knew it was perfect, and they were happy for us to select all our suppliers which was an amazing bonus!

Caterer – Home Gurrown

The Ceremony & Music

We got married at St Mary and All Saints Church, Boxley – the same church that Katie’s parents and sister had done before. We have some incredibly talented friends who actually sang Katie down the aisle to a version of Stand By Me and also performed throughout the ceremony.

Everything was really personal; from the readings – which we chose for their references to housebuilding – to the vicar, who was the dad of one of the bridesmaids (Katie’s oldest friend!). It was really important that it felt unique to us.

Your Outfits

Katie – I purchased my dress from The Bridal Boutique of Jules who I chose because of the great range of vintage style dresses they stock. I fell in love with Eliza Jane Howell dresses as soon as I saw them. I’ve always loved the 1920s and the Musetta dress was just the right amount of 20s vibe whilst still being timeless.

The beading was what did it for me – all their dresses are hand-beaded so each one is unique – and it just felt so special.

Cullum – I decided to have a suit made from Souster & Hicks as I wanted something really different and special for our wedding day. It was a great experience picking out the fabric, lining, buttons etc and something I loved doing. I absolutely love the suit and couldn’t have been happier with it.

Your Photographer & Filmmaker

We had the wonderful Paul take our photos. We choose him for his laid back style and muted tones. He really captured the story of the day in ways we couldn’t of imagined, from the laughter and joy, to the quiet moments and the terrible dance moves! He was absolutely fantastic and a brilliant person to have there with us.

The Styling & Decor

We wanted to do as much as we could ourselves, so we collected lots of wine and spirit bottles which we filled with seasonal flowers and greenery in pinks, greens and soft muted shades, all from our wonderful florist and finished the tables off with fairy lights and battery candles.

Katie hand-lettered all the place names and wedding signs and Katie’s mum made our Maple Syrup wedding cake – chosen because it’s the name of our dog!

We had some amazing flower urns, again from our florist, and hired some vintage furniture from The Little Wedding Warehouse for some finishing touches – our friend even crocheted a mini Cullum and Katie to watch over proceedings from our vintage piano bar.

Outside we had blankets and lawn games, including a giant backgammon set as a nod to our engagement, and lit Swedish candles in the evening.

Our amazing, and it really was amazing, food was courtesy of our incredible caterers who we would have been lost without – they made the day run so smoothly and were just such lovely people to work with.

The Honeymoon

We escaped to North Wales for a mini moon and are planning an Italian adventure for next year.

Memorable Moments

SOOOO many to choose from!

Picking out new wedding day fragrances together a few days before the wedding.
Hearing the first words of our gorgeous friend singing Stand By Me.
Lighting our individual candles with shaking hands, and then our wedding candle together in the Church.
Cullum punching the air like his football team had just scored instead of ‘kissing the bride!’

But the best moment of our day was the last song of the night – Sweet Caroline. Everyone was on the dance floor with arms round each other singing and dancing, after the year we’ve all had that is certainly a moment we’ll never forget!

Advice For Other Couples

Enjoy the process – it is stressful at times, but it’s also really fun. And take time to soak it all in on the day! It’s so easy to say and so hard to do, but try and take a few moments for yourselves to just look around and see all the happiness around you.